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Lined up t a local dealt r that bikes won I to wait long for a now owner Bike are booming Fun but dangerous The bike business Is booming again In the last decade Canadians have re discovered the bicycle as a means of at physical fitness and bike sales have tripled Canadians ore enjoying the renaissance of cycling not only as a sport but also as a means of transportation Witness the recent strike In Toronto when thousands of rldeless workers went twowheeling to work on shiny new bikes Biking it a pollution free way to travel It can also be tun healthy and best of all cheap But our autoaddicted society has built few so far and cyclists have to contend with car traffic to gel where they re going The Canadian Automobile Association estimates there are over five million bikes in use on Canadian highways today The figure Includes about adult bikes and 3 children bikes Sales in reached 1 and were expected to reach 1 in Prior to the bike boom that really started in average yearly bike sales In Canada were so can see how their popularity has in creased Officials say exercise wasn t the only factor leading people to twowheclers The energy crisis rising fuel prices and a greater Interest in ecology are also con factors Although the boom has benefits there has been one alarming adverse side effect The highway death and injury rate has risen dramatically In 10 died and were injured in bike By 1972 the figure hod risen to deaths and 1660 injuries Last year a record was set at deaths 174 injuries and It appears the statistics will again break the record Bike riders arc supposed to observe most of the regulations and signals meant for cars but many don t The most common violation is failure lo obey stop signs Most accidents happened because bikers yield the right of way used the wrong arm signals or none when they turned rode on the wrong side ignored stoplights or rode at night without proper lights A study of accidents involving bikes Indicated a large number of the resulted from riding double on bikes designed for one performing stunts control of braking or hitting bumps and ruts Big boom in biking A of and rim can at any chootyard parking tot Built tor two and complete with bottla hero a modal